Cotton batting and process of making the same



1,642,509 p 1927 A. ROGERS COTTON BATTING AND PROCESS OF MAKING THE SAMEFiled Nov. 11, 1924 s sheets-sheet -1 INVENTOR AZWARD ALBERT ROGERS AORNEYS 13 19 7. Sept 2 E. A. ROGERS COTTON BATTING AND PROCESS OF MAKINGTHE SAME Filed Nov. 11, 1924 v 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR fow/wa ALBERTRos/ms A ORNEYS 13 1927. Sept E. A. ROGERS COTTON BATTING ANDfROCESS OFMAKING THE SAME 3 RWU m 9 mi N e mm m w? m r A MW m h s my 3 AB FiledNov. 11, 1924 Patented Sept. 13, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.-

EDWARD ALBERT ROGERS, OF LOCKPORT, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO LOCKPORT COTTONBATTING CO., OF LOCKPORT, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

COTTON BATTING AND PROCESS OF MAKING THE SAME.

Application filed Novemberll, 1924. SerialNo. 749,269.

This invention relates to cotton batting and to processes of makingcotton batting, and has for its general object so to form or toconstruct cotton bats, without mate- 3 rially increasing their cost, asto facilitate their handling in the production of certain articles forwhich suchbats are commonly used, such, for example, as comforters, andalso so to construct the bats as to insure preservation of the originalbat structures so far as possible in the subsequent use and treatment ofthe comforters or other articles for which the bats have been used.

.The inherent .strength or resistance to disruption of cotton battingvaries somewhat, of course, with'the length of the staple used in' theproduction of the batting, and also with the compactness of the batting.For many uses for which the batting is intended, and particularly foruse in making comforters, it is important, however, that the cotton haveconsiderable fiuifiness. Attempts heretofore made to reinforce orstrengthen cotton batting and to hold the cotton against lateraldisplacement and wadding when used in comforters, have usually resultedin a considerable loss of the fluffiness and other qualitiesparticularly desirable in the making ofcomforters. This is particularlytrue where reliance has been placed principally upon stitching of thebat. Too much stitching of the bat tends to compact it and to destroy aconsiderable part of its fiuffiness.

' as Other attempts to reinforce cotton batting by laying threads in thebatting in the course of manufacture have proved ineffective for tworeasons: In the first place, if the threads are to be carried across thebat in the course 40 of the manufacture thereof by a reciprocatingcarrier, it is necessary to slow up very much the formation of the batif the threads are to lie in suflicient approximation to a crosswiseposition in the bat to be effective for crosswise reinforcement. In'thesecond place, such threads not positioned in lines substantially normalto the length of the bat and not relatively close together aresubstantially useless for reinforcement of the bat against thedisrupting strains to which it is subjected in ordinary use.

One object of the present invention is to secure reinforcement of thebat against both lateral and longitudinal disrupting strains which willbe more effective than methods embodying the present invention and theheretofore employed, which can be effected at low cost and which doesnot materially interfere with the speed of manufacture of the bats, thereenforcement being so effected as to lend itself to continuousoperation.

The invention also aims so to reinforce cotton batting that thereinforcing means will remain in position, will tend to prevent lumpingand wadding of the cotton when used, for example, in comforters, andwill not materially reduce the flufiiness of the cotton so desirable forsuch uses.

The invention aims also so to reinforce cotton batting as to give thebatting substantially uniform strength both longitudinally andlaterally, and to do this without affecting the utility of the battingfor any of (ghe purposes for which it is ordinarily use Other objectsand important features of the invention will appear from the followingdescription andclaims when considered in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which is illustrated both a novel bat novelprocess of producing this bat. I

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view illustrating the process of formingthe novel hat of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic side elevation of the arrangement shown in planin Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a detail plan view partly broken away illustrating the stepsof providing reinforcement for the novel hat of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 3 inabout the same detail;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic side elevation of a carding machine used toform one of the webs that go into the bat and showing its relation tothe forming apron illustrated in section at the left of this view; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a finished bat with a portion of thereinforcing web-' 1 bing uncovered to show its position in the bat withrelation to the lines of reinforcing stitching and also in relation tothe layers of cotton.

In the manufacture .of cotton batting, it 10 has long been customary tolay down upon a continuously traveling apron 2 upon which the bat isformed, successive webs 4, 6, 8,

10, 12, 14, of cotton formed in cardin or garnetingmachines 16. Thesewebs are aid 1 upon the forming apron by delivering mechanisms 18associated with the respective carding machines, which deliveringmechanisms reciprocate across the forming apron 2 and lay the web uponthe apron as said apron is traveling at right angles to the path ofreciprocation of the delivering mechanisms, the carding or garnetingInachines 16 being arranged at intervals along the path of travel of theforming apron as shown diagrammatically in Figs. 1 and 2. The succeedinglayers or webs of cotton are therefore laid upon the preceding ones in azigzag or criss-cross form or arrangement, as shown in Fig. 1, whichcauses considerable overlappin of the webs upon themselves and crosslngand interlockmg of the fibres of the cotton, whereby an effectivefelting of the cotton is attained.

In producing the novel batting of the present invention by the processhereinafter escribed, the introduction of the reinforcing loosely-wovenfabric or webbing has been so arranged that the webbing enters into andforms a constituent part of the bat, is thoroughly interlocked with thecotton in the formation of the bat and does not materially interferewith the speed of formation of the bat. As herein illustrated, thewebbing 20 is arran ed to be unwound from a roll 22 and lai upon thecotton on the forming apron before all of the webs or layers which go tomake up a complete but have been laid upon the apron. Thus, for example,when, as herein shown, a bat is to be formed of six webs or layers ofcotton delivered from six carding or garneting machines arranged atintervals along the line of travel of the forming apron, the roll 22 ofloosely-woven fabric or webbing from which the reinforcing webbing is tobe unwound upon an intermediate layer of the bat is preferably arrangedat a point in the line of travel of the forming apron 2 where it willdeliver the webbing 20 to the forming a rgn so that it will be laid uponthe first tiree, 4 6 and 8, of the webs or layers which go into themake-up of the bat, thus permitting the other three layers, 10, 12 and14, to be laid over the webbing, thereby having the webbing orreinforcement midwa of the thickness of the bat.

y introducing the reinforcing webbing 20 into the batting in the mannerhereinbefore set fort-h during the formation of the bat, the webbing, asherein shown, being of relatively wide mesh, the cotton interlocksitself through the interstices of the mesh and the webbing is thusincorporated in the battin and is not a distinct and separate layer.

To insure the maximum reinforcing e ect of the webbing, it is essentialthat the threads lie substantially straight, both those that extend lenthwise of the batting and those that eaten crosswise; To insure such wanon location and condition of the threads of the webbing in the batting,the lengthwise threads of the webbing are kept under tension during thelaying of the webbing upon the batting and lateral tension is also putupon the webbing so that the crosswise threads are also stretched intosubstantially straight condition, this being further important to insurethat the webbing extend to the full width of the batting. Suchstretching may be effected in any suitable way as, for example, over thearched stretcher bar 24: herein illustrated.

As shown in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawings, the webbing 20, after passingover the arched stretcher bar 24, passes beneath a roller 25 whichspreads it evenly over the bat and insures its embedding therein in itslaterally and longitudinally stretched open mesh condition.

The loosely-woven fabric or webbing having been positioned in andinterlocked with the batting and the batting having passed under theusual pressure roller 26 to even out its surface and insure asubstantial. uniformity of its internal structure, the batting thusformed and reinforced is preferably further reinforced and the webbingsecured in position by longitudinal lines of stitching 28 so spacedlaterally as not to in terfere substantially with the fluiiincss of thebatting but yet sufliciently numerous to serve to tack the webbing inposition in the batting and to tack the batting to the webbing, thusproducing a batting-structure having substantially all the desirablecharacteristics of the unreinfn'ced bat, but many fold its resistance todisruption and relative displacement of its parts.

The insertion of the reinforcing lines of stitches is illustrateddiagrammaticall in Fig. 4c of the drawings where a stitcling machine 30having as many needles 32 as there are rows of stitches to be insertedin the bat is shown as arranged in the path of travel of the bat to acutting machine 3% where the continuous bat formed upon the apron 2 iscut into lengths suitable for the particular uses for which such batsare intended. For example, a bat formed upon the apron 2, 72 incheswide, is provided with a reinforcing webbing of the same width and, ifthe lines of reinforcing stitches are s aced 4 apart, would have acrossits widt 17 of such lines. This bat, as intended for use in the makingof comforters, would ordinarily be cut in lengths of by the cuttingmachine 34.

By reason of the reinforcing hereinabove described, bats made in theserelatively lar 'e dimensions can readily be handled without danger ofbeing torn apart.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the process ofmaking the improved batting of the present invention results in lit) theproduction of batting, or of individual bats, in which the reinforcingloosely-woven fabric or webbing is so incorporated in the bat that itforms a part of the unitary structure of the bat and not a distinctlayer, the webbing being laid and interlocked with the cotton while bothits warp threads and its weft threads are so stretched as to'insure therelatively wide mesh being open at the time the webbing is laid upon thecotton and embedded therein, whereby the-fibres of the cotton extendingthrough the interstices of the Webbing and being further interlockedwith the fibres of the cotton superposed upon the webbing, and pressedinto interlocking relation, permanently position the warp and weftthreads of the webbing in substantially their extendedbr straightcondition so that they are immediately in position to resist rupturingstrains exerted along the rectangular dimensions of the bat. Moreover,the laying of the webs of cotton with the run of the fibres oblique tothe travel of the apron causes these fibres to be located in the bat onthe diagonals of the rectangu-' lar mesh of the webbing and thereforefurther reinforces the bat in that they form truss-like structures withthe threads of the structure to rupture over localareas in that,' asshown in the illustrated embodiment of webbing.

The further securing of the parts of the bat in the relations to eachother just described by relatively Widely spaced lines ofstitching'extending along one rectangular dimension only of the'batserves, among other things, to reinforce the resistance of the theinvention, these lines of stitching tack the weft threads atintermediate pointsalong their lengths sothat they are secured in morelocalized areas and thus offer greater resistance, particularly torupturing strains transverse to the plane of the bat. This tacking ofthe parts to increase the local resistance to rupturingstrains does not,however, because of the relatively wide mesh of the fabric andthetrelatively wide spacing of the lines of stitches, affect theflufiiness and elasticity of-the bat structure as a whole.

What is claimed as new is:

1 As a new article of manufacture, a cotton bat suitable for use incomforters, said bat comprising webs of cotton and a web ofloosely-woven fabric of such open rectangular mesh as to permitinterlocking of the fibres of the Webs of cotton therethrough, said webof fabric being situated between said webs of cotton and embeddedtherein with both its warpi and its weft threads in substantiallystraight condition, the webs of cotton bein through the interstices ofsaid loosely-woven fabric.- M .Q

2. As a new article of manufacture, a cotton bat suitable for use incomforters, said interlocked with each other bat comprising webs ofcotton and-a web of loosely-woven fabric of such open rectangular meshas to permit interlocking of the fibres of the webs of cottontherethrough, said web of fabric being situated between said webs ofcotton and embedded therein with both its warp and its weft threads insubstantially straight condition, the Webs of cotton being interlockedwith each other through the interstices of said loosely-woven fabric,said webs of cotton and said web of loosely-woven fabric being tacked,to prevent relative displacement and to reinforce their resistance torupture over local areas, by relatively widely spaced lines of stitchingextending across the bat in one dimension onl As a new'article ofmanufacture,-a cotton bat suitable for use in comforters, said batcomprising webs of cotton having the run of the fibres oblique to thelength of the bat and an interposed web of loosely-woven fabric of suchopen mesh as to permit the interlocking of the fibres of thewebs ofcotton therethrough, the webs of cotton being interlocked through theinterstices of said fabric and the warp and weft threads of thefabric'being embedded in the bat in substantially straight condition andsubstantiallyparallel to the rectangular dimensions .of

the bat.

4. As a new article ofmanufacture, a cot- I ton bat suitable for use incomforters,said bat being formed of webs of ,cotton having 7 interposedtherebetween and I interlocked therewith a'webbing of such openrectangular mesh as to permit interlocking of the I fibers of theopposedwebs of cotton therethrough, the warp'threads of said webbingextending in substantially straight condition throughout the length ofthe bat, and the weft threads extending in substantially straightcondition across the bat, and lines of stitching tacking said webbing inposition in the bat.

5. As a new article of manufacture, acotton bat suitable for use, incomforters and comprising webs of cotton, said bat having embeddedtherein intermediate between its faces a webbing of such openrectangular mesh as to permit interlocking of the fibres of the webs ofcotton therethrough, said webbing being in both its laterally and itslongitudinally extended-condition, said webs of cotton being interlockedthrough the interstices thereof and the parts being secured in'suchirelation by lines of stitchin along one dimension only andsubstantia y uniformly spaced across said bat.

6. As-a new article of manufacture, a cotton bat suitable for use incomforters and comprising superposed webs of cotton, said bat havingintermediate between its faces a webbing of such open rectangular meshas to permit interlocking of the fibres of the ing to tack them in thebat.

7. As a new article of manufacture, a cotton bat suitable for use incomforters and comprising webs of cotton arranged obliquely to thelength of the bat in cries-cross arrangement, said but havingintermediate between its faces a loosely-wovenfabric of such openrectangular mesh as to permit interlocking of the cotton fibrestherethrough, the warp threads of said fabric extending in substantiallystraight lines along one rec.- tangular dimension of said bat and theweft threads extending in substantially straight lines along the otherrectangular dimension of the bat and the cotton being interlockedthrough the open mesh of the fabric to maintain the relative positionsof the warp and weft threads of the fabric, and relatively widely spacedlines of stitching serving to reinforce the resistance of said structureto rupture over local areas.

8. As a new article of manufacture, a cotton bat suitable for use incomforters and comprising webs of cotton having the run of the fibresoblique to the length of the bat, said bat having incorporated thereinintermediate between its faces a web of loosely woven fabric of suchopen rectangular mesh as to ermit interlocking of the fibres of the we 5of cotton therethrough, the war threads of said fabric extendinglongitudinally of the bat in substantially straight condition and theweft threads extendin crosswise of the bat in substantially straig 1tcondition and the cotton webs being interlocked through the intersticesof said fabric, whereby the resultant bat is reinforced bothlongitudinally, transversely and dia onally.

9. As a new article of menu acture, a cotton bat suitable for use incomforters and comprising webs of cotton having the run of the fibresoblique to the length of the bat, said bat having incorporated thereinintermediate between its faces a web of looselywoven fabric of such openrectangular mesh as to permit interlocking of the fibres of the webs ofcotton therethrough, the war threads of said fabric extendinglongitudinally of the bat in substantially straight condition and theweft threads extending crosswise of the bat in substantially straightcondition and the cotton webs bein interlooked through the intersticesof said fabric, whereby the resultant bat is reinforced bothlongitudinally, transversely and diagonally, and relatively widelyspaced lines of stitcheagues ing tacking said parts in their relativepositions and thereby serving to reinforce the resistance of saidstructure to rupture over local areas.

10. The process of forming reinforced cotof such open rectangular meshas to permit the ready interlocking of the fibres of webs of cotton onopposite sides thereof through the interstices thereof, and, durin thelaying operation, stretching said web ing both longitudinally andlaterally so that the warp threads of said webbing extend insubstantially straight lines lengthwise of the batting and theweftthreads extend in substantially straight lines crosswise of thebatting, then laying another web or webs of cotton over the webbing andforcing t parts into interlocked relation to each other and tacking thewhole together by stitching.

11. The process of forming reinforced cotton battingsuitable for use incomforters, which consists in laying down on the forming apron one ormore zigzag la ers of cotton with the run of the fibres ob ique to thetravel of the apron, then layin upon the cotton a loosely-woven webbing0 such open rectangular mesh as to permit the interlock ing therethroughof the fibres of layers of cotton on the opposite faces thereof and,during the laying operation, stretching said webbing both longitudinallyand laterally so that the warp threads of said webbin extend insubstantially straight lines lengt wise of the battin and the weftthreads extend in substantia y straight lines across the batting, thenlayin one or more zigzag layers of cotton over the webbing with the runof the fibres oblique to the travel of the apron,

ressing the cotton of the upper and lower ayers into interlockedrelation throu h the interstices of the webbing while the '0 reads ofthe webbing are still in their initially laid relation, and, while theparts of the batting are thus in their predetermined relations to eachother, tacking the parts of the batting together by relatively widelyspaced lines of stitching.

12. The process of forming reinforced cotton batting suitable for use incomforters, which consists in laying down on the forming apron one ormore zigzag layers of cotton with the run of the fi res oblique to thetravel of the apron, then laying upon the cotton a loosely-woven webbinghaving a mesh of such dnnensions as to ermit interlocking of the fibresof layers of cotton upon opposite faces of the webbing through theinterstices thereof and, during the laying operation, so stretching saidwebbing both 1on webbing to extend in substantially straight lineslengthwise of the batting and the weft threads to extend insubstantially straight lines across the batting, pressing the webbing inits open condition into the cotton, then laying one or more zigzaglayers of cotton over the webbing with the run of the fibres oblique tothe travel of the apron, pressing the cotton of the upper and lowerlayers into interlocked relation through the interstices of the webbing,while the mesh is still in its open condition and the threads of thewebbing are still in their initially laid relation to the bat, and,while the parts of the batting are thus in their predetermined relationsto each other, tacking the parts of the batting together by lines ofstitchin serving to reinforce the resistance of sai structure to ruptureover local areas.

13. The process of formmg remforced cotton batting suitable for use incomforters,

which consists in laying down on the forming apron one or more layers ofcotton having the fibres in crisscross relation and oblique to thetravel of the apron, then laying upon and partly embedding in the cottona loosely woven webbin of such open rectangular mesh as to permit theinterlocking therethrou-gh of the fibres of layers of cotton on oppositefaces thereof and, durin the laying operation, putting the warp an.Weft-threads of said webbing under tension so that the threads of onegroup extend in substantially straight lines lengthwise of the battingand the threads of another group extend in substantially straight linesacross the batting and while the webbing is thus partly embedded in itslaid condition in the batting laying similar layers of cotton over thewebbing and pressing the cotton of the upper and lower. layers intointerlocked relation through the interstices of the webbin Signed atLockport, N. Y., this 7th day of November, 1924.

EDWARD ALBERT ROGERS.

